West Dereham Parish Council Meeting July 18

DRAFT MINUTES OF THE WEST DEREHAM PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD AT WEST DEREHAM VILLAGE HALL AT 7.30 pm ON THURSDAY 5 JULY 2018 PRESENT (Five Councillors):- Pam Bullas (PB), Claire Cann (CC) - Chair, Lorraine Hunt (LH), Paula Kellingray (PK) and Claire Williams (CW). In attendance: Peter King, Parish Clerk, and 4 members of the public. The Chairman welcomed everyone present to the Parish Council Meeting. 1. Apologies for absence Apologies were received from Parish Councillors Pam Walker and Tom Foy, local Borough Councillor Sandra Squire and local Borough and County Councillor Brian Long. No other apologies were received. 2. Declaration of Interest on agenda items No declarations were made. 3. Use of social media, audio recording of meeting and invitation for public contributions CC asked “Will anyone present be filming, recording, blogging, or tweeting during this meeting?” There was no response from the members of the public present. CC advised members of the public that if they wished to comment on any item, before a decision was made, they should raise their hand and they would be invited to speak. 4. Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on 7 June 2018 and the Extraordinary Parish Council Meeting held on 29th June 2018 CC confirmed all Councillors had seen the minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on 7 June 2018. The councillors agreed that subject to a couple of typographical errors in paragraph 8.4 noted, that they were content that the minutes should be signed as a true record. CC signed the minutes. CC confirmed all Councillors had seen the minutes of the Extraordinary Parish Council meeting held on 29 June 2018. The councillors agreed that they were content that the minutes should be signed as a true record. CC signed the minutes. 5. Matters Arising from the Minutes 5.1 Norfolk County Council Highways Department (NCCHD) - Footpath Noticeboard - The Parish Clerk reported that he had received a further phone call from NCCHD regarding reinstalling the noticeboard, but noted there had been no further development. 5.2 Barclays Banking - The Parish Clerk reported that he had received some advice from Jo Raby, Internal Auditor (IA) who had recently carried out the Parish Internal Audit on whether the Parish Council should obtain a debit card for making certain payments. The Parish Clerk noted that the IA had recommended that the Parish Council should avoid if possible obtaining a debit card, but that the Parish Clerk should, if agreeable, make necessary purchases and identify payments as an expense that would be reimbursed. The Parish Clerk added he was advised that the instalment payments being made in respect of the Parish website should be replaced by the setting up of a direct debit from one of the Parish Council accounts. The Parish Clerk also reported that he had written to Barclays on 6th June to request that the Community Account (Allotments income) should be allowed to continue as an active account and that he had requested a transfer payment from another account to be made and that when he checked (3rd July), the transfer had not been made. A Parishioner suggested that some companies have a business section that would accept cheque 2 payments or provide invoices for the sale of certain products. Councillors agreed that the Parish Clerk should explore both possibilities and discuss with Barclays Bank the appropriate process for setting up a direct debit payment. 5.3 War Memorial - The Parish Clerk reported that he had contacted three local stonemasons and sent photographs of the work required, but had not received any feedback. 5.4 Overgrown brambles growing on the side of 10 Ryston Road - The Parish Clerk reported he had received a letter from Mr Wiseman, a member of the Cleanup department employed by the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk (BCKLWN) Parks and Open Spaces Department and read it to the meeting. “Having discussed with the grounds manager, I can confirm we will be making arrangements for an access strip to be cut back at the end of bird nesting season (September/October time). After it has been cut back, would the Parish Council be open to the suggestion of maintaining this area along with the playing field? CC expressed her pleasure with the proposal to cut back the overgrowing brambles, but noted in the longer term that the strip of land in question was the property and responsibility of BCKLWN however. The Councillors commented that the Parish Council had already had to reduce its programme of grass cutting due to level of finances. The Parish Clerk was asked to respond to Cleanup asking them to continue as a result of reduced finances for grass cutting and noting BCKLWN’s responsibility for the strip of land in question. 5.5 Insurance Premium Renewal - The Parish Clerk reported that he had previously written to the insurance brokers concerning the addition of the recreation ground goalpost to the list of items covered for risk, but was waiting for a response. The Parish Clerk noted that as a result of items raised by the IA regarding the latest cover, he would contact the insurance Brokers again, but with further revisions to the level of insurance cover. 5.6 Speed Monitor - The Parish Clerk reported that the Speed Monitor had been returned following replacement of a rotary switch and was operational in Station Road. 5.7 Chapel Home Farm Access from Ryston Road - The Parish Clerk reported that he had received a telephone call from an officer at Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Planning Department (BCKLWN-PD) advising that they had no issue about the gates or point of access to Chapel Home Farm on Ryston Road. The Parish Clerk added that there was some concern expressed relating to the concrete that had been placed at the gates in forming an entrance into a field and the matter had been passed to the Norfolk County Council Highways and Transportation Department to consider. CC commented that BCKLWNPD had previously advised that the gates were installed for the period of the redevelopment of the farm property. 5.8 GDPR - The Parish Clerk reported that he still had some work to carry out on the information audit and the Staff and Parish Councillors Privacy Notice. 5.9 Village Signs - The Parish Clerk reported that he had placed an item in the monthly Parish Notice asking for Parishioners ideas. PB noted that in the minutes of the Stoke Ferry Parish Council published in ‘The Village Pump’ that they were looking to identify possible grants to help funding the replacement of their sign. 5.10 Norwich Western Traffic Link - The Parish Clerk confirmed that details of the consultation had been added to the Parish website. The Parish Clerk noted that he did not have any matters arising form the Extraordinary meeting held on 29th June 2018. 6. Reports 6.1 Chairman’s Report - 3 CC reported that the Parish Council had introduced a watering system for the new trees in the Natural Burial area of the Cemetery for the duration of the drought. 6.2 Parish Clerk’s Report - 6.2.1 5 Lime Kiln Road - Ditches - The Parish Clerk reported that he had received a number of emailed messages from Norfolk County Council Flood Authority and they had agreed to inspect the ditch at 5 Lime Kiln Road on 27th June, however the the appointment had not been kept. The Parish Clerk was waiting for a further response. 6.2.2 Electoral Services BCKLWN - The Parish Clerk reported that he had received a letter from the Electoral Services Manager that he read to the meeting. ‘I write to advise you that at a Council Meeting held on 14 June 2018 the Borough Council resolved to re-charge the costs of uncontested Parish Council Elections to the Parish Councils concerned. This will apply at the four-yearly Parish Council Elections as well as any Casual Vacancies in between. The re-charges will be the actual costs incurred per uncontested election and charges will take effect from 1 April 2019.’ CC stated that the Parish Council would have to pay if there was an election and now pay if there is not an election as a result of administrative costs of printing the leaflets that state who the candidates are where they are standing. The Parish Clerk noted that there had been several emailed responses from other Parish Councils, however, the main concern related to future costs. LH commented that she questioned how other Norfolk-based Borough Councils behaved in respect of charging or not. PK questioned that if an uncontested West Dereham Parish Council election is held at the same time as a Borough Council election, then how are the costs allocated? CC commented that she was surprised that the Norfolk Association of Local Councils (NALC) had not, as yet, taken any action on this matter. The Councillors requested that the Parish Clerk approach NALC to determine what the legal status is of this development. CC added that the Parish Clerk should respond by asking BCKLWN Electoral Services for a breakdown of the costs and how they would be allocated if there were dual authority elections taking place at the same time. 6.2.3 Riverside Nurseries - The Parish Clerk read out an invitation from Josh Hoopes, the Manager of Riverside Nurseries. ‘As it has been some time since we last spoke, I wondered if you and the Councillors would like to visit our site again? We recently completed our spring harvest and would be grateful for any insight you may have received during the operation. Further to our commitment to you last year, we have invested in an enhanced dust extraction system for our finished goods operation. We would also be happy to show you the new equipment and explain the additional benefits it provides. Please let me know if there is a convenient time for you to visit and we hope to see you soon.’ The Councillors asked the Parish Clerk to arrange a meeting date for a visit to the nursery and to request if Parishioners could also be included. 6.3 Handyman’s Report – The Parish Clerk provided Roy Poole, the Handyman’s Report of work carried out during June 2018, noting the following actions:- 6.3.1. Speeding Monitor - Moved the speed monitor from Church Road to Station Road and then when discovered to be faulty, placed it into the Parish Clerk’s car for return to the manufacturers. 6.3.2. Grass Management - Strimmed the grass verges at the 10 bridges, around the phone boxes, the safety signs, the corner at Bath Road and cut back brambles growing on the footpath. CC noted that the brambles should be the responsibility of the householder. 6.3.3. Planters in Church Road - Removed the spring bulbs, added a bag of compost and cleaned down and re-stained the woodwork of the planters. 6.3.4. Cemetery and Remembrance Garden - Continued the weeding and edged around the Remembrance Garden and noticed a crack in the birdbath stonework. CC requested that the Cemetery mesh fencing where damaged is replaced. The Parish Clerk noted that the Handyman had worked 18 hours during June. 6.4 Police Report - 4 PK reported that there had been a series of burglaries over the past month in Downham Market and villages in the wider area. PK noted that three men in a dark-coloured Audi estate car were believed to be responsible for the burglaries and police have asked for any dash-cam footage of the vehicle, to come forward. LH commented that in the current hot weather period that parishioners should be careful to keep their premises and garden sheds locked at all times. PK noted that the Police had agreed that the Parish Council could add some limited information in the Parish Notice concerning the unsuccessful attempt to pull a female parishioner into a car along the Ryston Road as reported at the last Parish Council meeting. 6.5 Village Hall Report - PK reported that a replacement drinks chiller cabinet in the Village Hall bar had been obtained for £200 and thanked those in the village who had made donations towards its purchase. PK commented that the West Norfolk Wins lottery had raised £70.50 towards the Village Hall funds. PK noted that the Village Hall Management meeting to be held on 11 July would involve all interested parties regarding the siting and usage of the Cre8 storage shed. CC noted that the land ownership position was complex in respect of the Village Hall and the Village Trust and the difficulty of finding suitable insurance cover affected the placement of the shed. LH commented that she hoped the matter could be resolved as the shed would be a useful community resource. 6.6 Glazewing Report - PB reported that she is aware of a member of the public who had received a confirmation letter that was entitled; ‘Veolia Acquisition of Trade Waste and Recycling Services from Glazewing Ltd’, the letter goes on to say that we give notice that with effect from 3rd July 2018 your contract transferred to Veolia from this date’ and ‘we will be providing your waste collection and recycling services’. PB commented that Stephen Halls (SH) who is employed by Norfolk County Council was due to visit the waste management site today following a report she had received and sent to SH of out of hours working last Saturday evening between 5.30 and 5.50pm. PB added that it was reported a Firow skip vehicle opened the gates and spent 20 minutes on-site. PB noted that in addition, two cars were observed the following day, but the occupants were apparently carrying out security checks and when advised, SH considered this permissible. PB noted that she had contacted the Traffic Commissioners Office (TCO) as a follow up to their letter advising of a public inquiry. PB was advised that a Traffic Examiner had not yet been appointed, a traffic examination would be carried out by the DVSA who would look to see if there was any justification for a public inquiry and if there was, a local venue would be booked and those people who had received TCO letters would then be notified. PB added she was advised that there would be 4-5 weeks notice given of the public inquiry and that it would likely to be structured around the issues of noise, fumes, vibrations and visual intrusions. LH commented that the Parish Council still doesn’t know if Veolia will be using the waste management site? PB commented that Glazewing would presumably continue with the need of a reduced site. A Parishioner commented that recently he had waited forty five minutes on the Glazewing weighbridge whilst staff members from the Environment Agency tested his empty metal paint cans to ensure that it was safe to tip them. CC noticed that unless there are changes, the current licenses held would continue to exist. The Parish Clerk reported that he had also contacted the TCO but had been unsuccessful in obtaining any information regarding a public inquiry or obtaining a copy of a transcript from the last inquiry. The Parish Clerk commented that from inspecting the recent weekly TCO Applications and Decisions notices, that Veolia had withdrawn their interest in the Station Road waste management site, but have submitted a new application to keep their vehicles on the Bexwell industrial site. The Parish Clerk noted that he had been asked to contact Councillor Brian Long (BC) to enquire if he had any information relating to the latest vehicle applications to the TCOs. The Parish Clerk read out BC’s reply, ‘County Councillors are not normally party to the workings of the traffic commissioners, and your letter comes as news to me. I am not certain as to why Veolia are involved, they used to work as contractors for the Borough Council in West Norfolk but lost their contract with us several years ago. They may of course have business dealings with Glazewing and this may be why they are looking at basing some vehicles on Glazewing’s site. I have not seen anything on the horizon as far as NCC planning is concerned, but will make some enquiries and get back to you if there is anything 5 happening on that front’. 7 Finance 7.1 Accounts for June Advance payments. 7.1.1 Cash Flow and Cash Book June 2018 – The Parish Clerk displayed the Cash Flow on the overhead projector, followed by the Cash Book noting that during June, there had been a total income received of £1,776.80 made up of £0.81 earned in bank interest and £1,775.99 from the VAT return for 2017/18. The Parish Clerk noted that the outgoings for June to be agreed totalled £3,276.96. 7.1.2 Cheque Payments for Approval for June 2018 – The Parish Clerk displayed the itemised pending payments on the overhead projector. Payee Cheque No Net VAT Gross Remarks West Dereham Village Hall 101026 £1450.00 £0.00 £1450.00 Annual Support payment 2018/19 Anglian Water Business Ltd (National) 101027 £11.71 £0.00 £11.71 Provision of water to Parish Cemetery Holly Landscapes 101028 £487.50 £97.50 £585.00 Ground Maintenance - June 2018 J Raby 101029 £85.00 £0.00 £85.00 Internal Audit (2017/18) Westcotec Ltd. 101030 £49.50 £9.90 £59.40 Speed Monitor repair R. Poole 101031 £205.27 £0.00 £205.27 Handyman Pay and Expenses - June 2018 P.King (Parish Clerk) 101032 £638.21 £0.00 £638.21 Staff Salary & Expenses - June18 & backpay for April and May 18 West Dereham Village Hall 101033 £228.37 £0.00 £228.37 Parish Council hall hire fees - Apr-Jun 2018 (4 meetings) Borough Council of Kings Lynn & W Norfolk 101034 £5.00 £0.00 £5.00 Land rent for St Andrews Close Playing field Total £3160.56 £107.40 £3267.96 CC asked the Councillors present if they were content with the payments. All Councillors noted they were content. CC concluded that the cheques and control processes would be signed off at the end of the meeting. 7.2 Approval for purchase of new laptop LH noted that this had been previously agreed. 8. Parish Council Internal Affairs and Policies 8.1 Allotment Tenancy Agreement CC asked the Councillors present if they were content with the revised policy. All Councillors noted they were content. CC noted that the policy had been reviewed and revised. 8.2 Standing Orders The Parish Clerk reported that he was not aware of any reported updates since the last review of the Standing Orders. CC asked the Councillors present if they were content with the reviewed Standing Orders. All Councillors noted they were content. CC noted that Standing Orders had been reviewed. 9. To comment on Planning applications currently received - The Parish Clerk reported that there were no current planning applications or decisions to consider. 10. Feedback from the recent Stoke Ferry Board meeting regarding local ditches 6 The Parish Clerk reported that Councillor Pam Walker had noted that the Norfolk department of water management should be contacted and to outline the issues of concern relating to the local ditches. 11. Correspondence The Parish Clerk confirmed that all items of correspondence had been covered elsewhere on the meeting agenda. 12. To receive further reports/items of business for the next Agenda PB noted that Norfolk County Council were circulating information about scam alerts and suggested the website details should be added to the Parish website. LH and PK commented that the British Legion had been made aware that the Nat West Bank were offering scam awareness sessions. LH noted that she had previously been unsuccessful in arranging a village meeting with Trading Standards on scam awareness and was keen to take up the Nat West offer of a session in the Village Hall. It was agreed arrange a session and to include forward details in the next Parish Notice 13. Date of next Parish Council Meeting To note that the next Parish Meeting will be held on Thursday 2nd August 2018 at 7.30pm in the West Dereham Village Hall. The meeting will be preceded with Open Surgery at 7.00pm 14. Open Forum A Parishioner raised the question of the Parish Council being able to carry out Barclays banking transfers between accounts, but the conclusion was that the Parish Council would still need to hold a debit card to carry out such a transaction. A Parishioner questioned why there had been a need to hold an Extraordinary Parish Council meeting on 29th June 2018. CC responded that the Internal Audit for 2017/18 needed to be received and approved and that there were three planning applications relating to Frimstones quarry operations at Crimplesham that needed to be discussed in advance of this evening’s meeting due to time restrictions. Closure : The Chairman thanked everyone for attending, and final closure of the meeting was at 9.02 pm. There were no further items raised by members of the Public present. Next meeting is the Parish Council Meeting on Thursday 2nd August 2018 at 7.30pm with Open Surgery from 7.00pm. Clerk: Peter King - Email: clerk@westderehamparishcouncil.uk Telephone: 01366 502110 Chairman’s signature …………………………………… Date ………………………